Don’t Run Away My Lord

45 – The Territory Ruled by the Furry One (1)

“I understand what you mean… It’s not unheard of for territories to be changed… but…”

Ulfert closed his mouth, but I could roughly guess what he was going to say next.

He’s probably wondering how we can take someone else’s territory when we have no soldiers or anything.

I have no intention of answering that question one by one.

Anyway, I won’t be able to trust him, and as long as Ulphert fulfills his duties as the captain of the guards while I establish a suitable territory, that’s enough.

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“I’ll take care of that. Let’s head back to the Lordship.”

When Liana turned the conversation towards the Lordship, she glared at Ulphert menacingly.

It was because Ulphert had shown disrespect towards me earlier.

Without realizing it, Ulphert lowered his gaze, as if those eyes were incredibly terrifying.

Liana… She suddenly changed after gaining a territory and becoming the Lord.

Was this her true nature, or was she just eager to fulfill her role as the Lord…

As we headed towards the Lordship, Liana leaned in close to me and spoke firmly.

“Make sure to keep the captain of the guards in check. He may seem loyal, but from what I’ve seen, he seems more loyal to the Grand Lord than to you.”

“I think the same. But if he has a good relationship with the Grand Lord, Ulphert will follow me. So don’t be too harsh on him.”

“No, that’s not right, my Lord. If you let him get away with small things, he will eventually cross the line with more important matters. You shouldn’t give him any leeway at all.”

“Alright, I understand.”

As I replied, Liana continued speaking with a slightly softened expression and tone.

“We should hire some servants to work in the Lordship as soon as possible. Even though we’ll eventually move elsewhere, we can’t just use the people there as they are.”

“That’s true. I’ve been thinking that we need someone to exclusively take care of the Grand Lord as well.”

“Yes, and a head chef too. We can’t waste time on meals now that we’re no longer travelers.”

“That’s right. Let’s go back to the Lordship for now, decide which territory to settle in, and then think about it.”

* * * * *

As we returned to the Lordship, the Grand Lord was slowly walking through the courtyard, leaning on his staff.

Kaita followed closely behind, anxiously watching to see if he would stumble and fall.

I need to find someone to take care of the Lord Grand’s affairs quickly.

But as a mage, I can’t just follow an old man like that.

The same goes for Nana, Liana, and Ulfert.

“Lord Grand, please come with us.”

Approaching and speaking, Lord Grand looked at me with cloudy eyes.

“Who are you?”

“I am Erga. I came in as the Lord Grand’s successor and inherited the territory.”

“Hmm…? Is that so…? I thought you looked like my son, and indeed, you are my son.”

We accompanied Lord Grand and went up to the Lord’s office.

A large map was attached to the wall of the office, and we were going to discuss the territory to attack there.

If we were lucky, Lord Grand’s mind might come back for a while and give us some appropriate advice.

We arranged the table and chairs to make the map visible, and Ulfert stood in front of the map.

“Lord and Chief Minister came from Veravche, and the mage is from a completely different region, so let me explain the area first. After that, we can set our goals.”

“Good, Ulfert. Start.”

Ulfert pointed to the map with a long pointer.

“This is our territory. It is located in the west of the kingdom, and if you pass through the vast uninhabited area in the west of the territory, you will soon reach the border of Veravche. As you can see, the east is the Murei Mountain Range, which runs from north to south. That is the Viscount’s territory.”

“Huh? Is the Viscount’s territory that big? People might think it’s a duchy.”

Liana was surprised as she looked at the boundaries of the territory.

“That’s right, Chief Minister. It is quite large for a Viscount’s territory. But as I mentioned, the west is an uninhabited area. The rest of the land is mostly in similar situations.”

“In the end, we only have a bunch of useless land.”

“Yes. Our territory isn’t fertile, and the forest isn’t lush either. There aren’t even underground or tourist resources. When I was young, I didn’t know, but now that I’m older, I wonder if there are any territories like this.”

With that, Ulfric glanced at the lord sitting in the corner, lost in thought.

“Our territory seems to have poor land due to the mountain range.”

“That’s right. The soil completely changes depending on the mountains. That’s why in the past, we attacked other territories through some paths in this eastern mountain range.”

Finally, I understood completely.

Why did no one touch this place for ten years, even though the lord was missing?

There was no reason to come to this empty territory beyond the mountain range.

In that case, I must give up this territory and establish a new base in another territory.

No matter what I do here, there is no way to survive other than plundering other territories.

Let’s see…

To the west is a wasteland, blocked by mountains to the north and east, and to the south, if I push further, I’ll reach the border of another kingdom…

In the end, we have to advance beyond the eastern mountain range.

“Yes, my lord. We must go east to get closer to the capital and secure better land.”

“Good. Then is there a suitable territory? It should be easy to capture and maintain stability after occupation.”

“There is such a place.”

Ulfric pointed to a territory close to the eastern mountain range.

“It’s the Marquis Gillan’s territory.”

That’s the place the lord told me about.

He said it’s right to start from there if I’m determined to occupy it.

“Why?”

First, it connects directly to one of the several paths over the mountain range. And in terms of location, it can easily extend to anywhere in the east.

“It’s easy to enter, and the width of the territory is wide when attacking the next domain. But there’s something more important. After pushing out the lord.”

There are four of us.

The lord, the chief of staff, the wizard, and the captain of the guard.

Even the wizard is a beginner who can’t properly cast dispelling magic.

No matter how I alone enter the lord’s castle and take it over, afterwards, the four of us have to control the lord’s castle and the domain.

Can the four of us really control the spirits, the soldiers following the domain, and the people of the domain?

We can never completely occupy the domain by executing those who do not obey.

The spirits must cooperate with us in order to smoothly proceed to the next step.

“From that perspective, is Lord Gillan still a viable candidate?”

“Of course, my lord. That’s why we must attack Lord Gillan even more.”

“It seems that Lord Gillan has some issues.”

Wolpert smiled slyly.

It seemed as if Wolpert’s inner voice saying ‘He’s quite something’ could be heard.

“Lord Gillan is a werewolf.”

“What…?!” “The lord is a werewolf?!”

Liana and Kaita exclaimed at the same time.

If he’s a werewolf, then they are beings that have both the appearance and intelligence of humans, while being beasts.

They are not demons, but they are also not considered the ‘dominant races’ like humans or dwarves.

Of course, just because their outward appearance is similar to beasts, it doesn’t mean that they cannot operate the domain, as they think, act, and speak no differently from the dominant races.

However, it was clear that most of the nobles inherited their territories for generations.

Does that mean they are noble werewolves?

Upon my question, Ulfric nodded.

“I will explain again. To be precise, Count Gillan exists separately, and there are werewolves behind him.”

“Behind him?”

Liana, who had been silent, suddenly raised her hand with a disgusted expression.

“Just a moment, Captain of the Guard. What kind of werewolf… is it?”

“It’s a female.”

Disgust flashed across Liana’s face.

“Oh, no…”

“What’s wrong, Liana… I mean… Lady Sijong…?”

Keita, who didn’t understand English, asked Liana in confusion.

Liana kept her mouth shut for a moment and then asked.

“Captain of the Guard. Is that ‘behind’ what I think it is…?”

“Yes, that’s right. It’s for that reason.”

“Ah…”

I could roughly guess what was going on.

If there was a female werewolf behind the Count…

Behind the scenes, I’m not sure what they’re up to, but it’s obvious how they became the power behind the scenes.

“Keep explaining, Captain of the Guard.”

“Yes, my lord. As you and the chief suspect, Lord Gillan, have guessed, Lord Gillan possesses somewhat abnormal city walls. So, he captures and collects various breeds of therians, either to sell or to keep. And this cat therian is one of them.”

“If there are various breeds?”

“Lizard therian, pig therian, snake therian, and-“

“Hiss?!”

Keita gasped and covered his mouth.

I was surprised too.

I thought the cat therian, with its exceptional appearance and allure, would have some demand, but a lizard? A pig? A snake…?!

“I apologize. Anyway… this cat therian completely captivated Lord Gillan with its breed-specific temperament and eventually rose to a position almost equivalent to Lady Gillan.”

“That’s possible… But what does having such unique spies have to do with us going to Lord Gillan’s territory? It can’t be just because the people of the territory feel repulsed by Lord Gillan’s s*xual preferences.”

“Yes, my lord. It is widely known that lords with incomprehensible city walls exist. Just feeling s*xual desire for a monkey therian is not enough.”